Super-food black beans make for easy soup

Black bean soup with smoked paprika and jalapeno is ready in under an hour, making it a great meal for a week night. Some sliced avocado adds a cool creaminess and a simple quesadilla serves as a grilled cheese of sorts.JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

We eat a lot of beans in our house. Go ahead, get all your jokes out of the way now. Really, it's OK. We probably have made many of those jokes ourselves.

But the truth is, we just like beans. I use them in side dishes, as purees and in a variety of soups.

They are a pretty amazing little food. Lots of protein and fiber and vitamins. Very little fat. And black beans, one of our favorites, are also a good way to get some calcium and iron in our diets. WebMD.com lists beans as a super food that can not only fill you up, but can also help fight off illness.

Beans are also, well, cheap. Even the canned versions are a bargain as far as super foods go. And, if you are in a hurry, they can save you loads of time when it comes to making a quick, weeknight soup.

I can have this smoky black bean soup with a hint of jalapeño on the table in just about 45 minutes, even with the prep (15 minutes maximum). Since it gets pureed anyway, the cuts on the vegetables don't have to be precise. They just have to be small enough for the ingredients to be done in the cooking time of about 30 minutes.

The blend of spices in this is also fun. At my house there is a lot of smelling of the spices as we measure them out to add to the soup.

Ben, 3, likes to help by scooping the spices out with the measuring spoons. We examine the color, then we take a little sniff. What does it smell like? Sometimes he wants to taste things before they go into the pot. When it is appropriate, I accommodate.

He does not always like them in that form, but I am happy that he is at least curious. And I explain to him that we might not want to eat them alone, but when they are added to the dish they will all work together to make it tasty.

We also do quality control on the veggies that go into this, sampling the diced carrots and red peppers.

Wisely, we decided not to sample the raw jalapeño, opting to just add it to the soup and let its heat be masked a bit by all the other ingredients.

Though the jalapeño in this should not be feared. There is a scant amount, just enough to provide a mild heat. And how much you add is up to you. Really, if you don't like them at all, you can skip them and the soup still has plenty of other nice flavors from the smoked paprika, cumin and coriander.

An added touch of smoked paprika dusted over the bowl of soup gives it a little extra smokiness if you like. But the favorite garnish for this at our table is sliced avocado. The cool creaminess of the avocado works well in this dish. And I like to play off the soup and grilled cheese theme by serving this soup with simple quesadillas.

Chicken broth works just fine in this. But with the great proteins from the beans, I prefer to make this a meatless meal, choosing vegetable broth instead.

It's a super simple dinner that makes the most of a really super food.

Black bean soup with smoked paprika and jalapeno is ready in under an hour, making it a great meal for a week night. Some sliced avocado adds a cool creaminess and a simple quesadilla serves as a grilled cheese of sorts. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Black bean soup is bulked up with carrots, onion and red pepper in the base. It gets a mild heat from some jalapeno. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
The heat in this quick black bean soup can be moderated to your taste. Start with a little finely chopped jalapeno, then add more if you want more heat. A tip: Wear gloves when handling the jalapenos to keep the hot oils from the peppers off your hands. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Canned black beans make this soup a snap. Dice tomatoes - I prefer fire-roasted - and some spices also give it a nice flavor. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Smoked paprika in the soup and then sprinkled on as a garnish gives black bean soup a hint of warm spice without heat. Sliced avocado, shredded cheese and chopped cilantro are also good garnishes. Other options include chopped green onion and sour cream. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
A quesadilla is a great companion to this quick black bean soup. It is a nice play off the simple dinner of soup and grilled cheese. JILL L. REED, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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